The Tell Tale Heart Case Analysis

Your Honor and Ladies and Gentlemen of the jury, the defendant in Edgar Allen Poe’s “The tell-Tale Heart” is insane; using the McNaughton rule it will be proven that the Caretaker should be placed in a state hospital for the criminally insane. The McNaughton rule states that one has a mental disorder or disease that compels them to commit the crime, the accused can not resist the urge to commit the crime, and that he or she did not know what he/she was doing, and the Defendant did not understand that what he/she was doing was wrong/illegal. The Caretaker should be considered insane because he is trying to convince everyone that he is sane. This is evident when he says,”Ha!-would a madman have been so wise as this” (90). This proves that he is insane because he is trying to prove that he is not insane. The Prosecution will try to say that the Caretaker planned and committed this murder. This idea is wrong because

Embracing the idea that he is insane the defendant is hearing things that normal people do not hear. This is evidence when he says,”I heard things in the heaven and in the earth”(89). This proves he is insane because he is hearing stuff that other normal people don’t. The prosecution will try to say that he is not hearing anything. That is wrong because he hears things in heaven and hell. This is evidence,”I heard many things in hell”(89). This proves he is insane because he is hearing stuff that normal people do not hear. The caretaker should be considered insane. Your Honor and ladies and gentlemen of the jury, the defendant should clearly be considered insane because of three things. The first thing is that he is trying to prove that he he is trying to prove that he is not insane. Secondly the defendant wants the old man’s eye not his gold. Lastly the defendant hears stuff that normal people do not hear. Therefore the defendant should be considered insane and should be sent to a mental